Caffeinated
by Cambion Delacroix
Summary: His beverage was perfect. Hot, smooth, and of course, heavily caffeinated. Lovino would sure as Hell need it for his day. AU, Spamano, rated T for well... Lovi's swearing.


His beverage was perfect. Hot, smooth, and of course, heavily caffeinated. Lovino had woken up on the wrong side of the bed, with aches swimming through his muscles and bones. Christ, he'd about torn off his younger brother's head that morning (though this did happen near every morning the boy was awake with him, now that he thought about it), and he actually kind of liked the insufferable boy. Now, his co-workers? Ha, not so much.

So yes, he'd surely need that caffeine to give him an extra kick while he wasted away in his cubicle, pretending to do his work while actually plotting the demise of the bastard across the office's potato salad. Oh, yippee.

All this stumbled through the slowly working gears of his tired mind, his lips inches from the hole of his coffee's lid, foot stepping out the door of the coffee shop…

Shit shit shit fuck piss shit! His mind screamed as hot fluid splattered all over his chest, ruining his morning, his drink, and his new shirt. "Fucking hell!"

"Ay!" came from the offender, hopping up and down on one foot, having seemingly splashed coffee all over the other leg. Lovino quirked an eyebrow at the freak the stood – hopped – before him.

"What the hell is your problem?" he yelled, voicing his utter discomfort. God dammit, he'd be late to work at this rate, but hell if he cared! He'd give this idiot a piece of his mind.

"I'm sorry!" the other man sputtered out, a little pout playing on his lips. "I'm really out of sorts this morning, and – and I'll buy you a new cup, alright?"

Hm, Lovino's face faded to that of being simply unimpressed. He was going to be late anyway, oughta make the idiot pay for it. "Fine. But hurry up!" he barked.

The other's face lit up immediately; bright and happy like a puppy as he bounded into the shop. Before Lovino was completely out of sight, he grabbed onto his wrist and proceeded to tug him in after him. 'W… what the hell?' Fixating his eyes on the hand clamped tightly around his wrist, a light heat rose to his cheeks. He was only further alarmed by his own childish reaction, heaving a sigh at himself.

The man looked back at him, stopping walking once the two were in the long line that had since developed at the register. "This might take a while, hm… Oh well." His eyes were locked on Lovino's, a matching of green. "I'm Antonio! Y tu—oh, sorry, and you, I mean?"

Pff, so he was Spanish, or Latino or whatever the hell they were called anymore. "Lovino," he gave his half-assed remark, refusing to withhold the eye contact. He couldn't figure it out, but there was just something… about him, that had his insides all in a frenzy. It had to be irritation, of course it was! Nothing else could explain the heat and nervousness… right?

"Nice to meet you!" Antonio grinned, he seemed to be a way overly happy guy, just like Lovino's brother. God, they were annoying. Antonio offered his tan hand to be shook, only to realize he still had a grip on Lovino's wrist. "Ahaha~" he laughed, almost nervously while promptly letting go.

Now, needless to say, Lovino was quite perplexed with this guy. He just acted adora—w-weird, that is. Extremely weird. And awkward, of course! Though, of course, due to his irritation, he was probably acting a bit off too. "Ah, si," he blinked, and offered his freed hand.

Taking a firm grip on the hand, Antonio shook and made a face of surprise, "Are you Spanish too?" God, what was wrong with this guy? Was he dropped on his head as an infant or what? If only to add to the problem, his grip was lasting much longer than a proper handshake would be desired.

"No, dumbass, I'm Italian," Lovino spat, clearly peeved with the guy. He knew he seemed snooty, but seriously, he was relatively snooty. Not that he'd say to anyone, he still wasn't dim as… a doornail, was the saying? He never seemed to know these days. By this time, he was starting to smell the coffee, thick in the air as they grew closer to the front of the line. It was so rich, so thick, he could hardly stand it…

"Oh, very close then!" Antonio grinned, giving a mock fistpump as he let go of Lovino's hand. Was… Was he really not phased at all by his rude composure? Usually that made people fly from him like flies from flyswatters. This man was far more idiotic than he'd first imagined – that was the only possibility.

While he took in this moment of inward mockery, Lovino paused. Eventually his answer came, "Uhm.. sure." Just more blinking, and an almost awkward silence ensued, causing him to remember the growing stinging on his chest. Hot damn…

Soon enough, the coffee was ordered, and the two of them were sitting down in some swanky chairs (by Antonio's insistence, of course), sipping at their coffee. Lovino seemed wary, but braved the encounter with the hot beverage anyway. It was a success, in case you were wondering.

As they sat, Lovino's irritation, as he'd grown to know it, was growing in the pit of his belly. They engaged in small talk, and feeling became lighter, more condescending, it felt. He could feel his cheeks redden – with anger, he assured himself (and hid dignity) – but he still gave back the replies the best of his ability.

The second hand and the minute hand ran past each other, and Antonio eventually eyed his wristwatch. "A-ay! I have to go! I've loved talking to you so much though…" he frowned.

Lovino frowned himself, deeper than before, but cut it off with, "M-mn, whatever," eyes quickly darting to the side.

Antonio pursed his lips, staring at the floorboards and thinking, before quickly pulling out a napkin and scrawling across it in runny blue ink. "Here, have my number!"

Lovino picked up the napkin, studying it, as well as the 'Antonio' that was in cursive, with a little heart next to it.

"Call me, okay~? Maybe we could have a lunch date!" Antonio blurted, eyes closing in a bright smile as he got to his feet. Had Lovino had any coffee in his moth at the time, it would've been all over the place at that moment, as his eyes widened in shock.

"W-what?" he stammered, looking up at the now standing Spanish man. His blush was brighter now, and the once slow gears of his brains were running a mile a minute. Too fast, almost, as it was overheating and ceasing to function properly.

"Huh?" he blinked, confused about what exactly was bothering him. Like one of those cartoon lightbulbs, his expression lit up. "Oh! Well, I think you're cute so…" He gave an awkward, almost shy smile. No, it couldn't be called that, the man oozed confidence.

Lovino swallowed, tried to slow down the gears in his brain for a comeback, but his heart was pumping fast now too. "I-I…" his tongue fumbled and brawled with his lips, fighting for coherence. "…Fine, I'll call you."

Antonio looked ready to jump for joy, as he rushed over to Lovino, placing a quick kiss on his nose ('What the hell?' his mind once again rang) and fluttering out of the coffee shop.

Lovino then realized how late he was for work… But he didn't care, he had a smile on his face.


End file.
